A History of Association Work 
in Lahore 


Nationat Boarp 
oF THE Youne Womens Curist1an AssoctaTIONS 
oF THE UNITED Srates oF AMERICA 
600 LexineTton AVENUE 
New York 
OcrozEer, 1913 


‘V'O'M’°A AUOHVY] ‘TIVE aSUoy 


A History of Association W ork 
in Lahore 


Lahore, the City. 


For those who have never seen India, this 
land of sunshine, a description of the capital 
of the Punjab should be attempted to give an 
understanding of the environment in which 
the Association works and witnesses for 
Christ in that country. 

The population of Lahore is 202,964 and out 
of these only 5,558 are Christians, which goes 
to prove how important this place of influence 
and witness is. Lahore is divided into four 
sections: (1) city, where practically all the 
Indians live in their narrow, quaint streets so 
well pictured for us by Kipling; (2) civil 
station, the residential quarters of the civil 
officials and other English people; (3) railway 
colony, the headquarters of the Northwestern 
Railway; (4) cantonments, which is entirely 
military, garrisoned by English and Indian 
troops, and is five miles distant from the civil 
station. 


Difficulties in the Work. 


The long distance between these sections 
creates great difficulty in the work. The rail- 
way, city and civil centers lie at the extreme 
borders of the areas and there are no tram- 
ways or omnibuses in India, so either car- 
riages (which are expensive) or bicycles have 
to be used. The present institute and home is 
conveniently situated for the civil station, but 
it is far from the railway and city members, 
many of whom cannot afford carriage hire, so 
that a visit to the institute 1s not a common 
thing. 

Social distinction is another problem which 
seriously hinders unity in the work. To give 
an instance; in the railway community the 
locomotive staff (men who drive the engines) 
stand aloof from the traffic staff (station 
masters, guards, etc.), each wife considering 
herself superior. In the railway district a 
member’s house is kindly lent, where meetings 
are held, but because of these feelings the 
attendance is not what it might be. 

One wonders what an American Associa- 
tion would say if from June to October the 
general committee could not meet; yet that is 


4 


JOhn Fe, Goucnh, 


INO, oe 
what happens here. In May, when the hot 
weather really sets in, as many ladies as pos- 
sible go to the hills, with the result that those 
remaining do not constitute a quorum, and if 
any important matter arises it means getting 
votes and opinions by post. Once when the 
committee’s decision was needed, a letter had 
to go 1,448 miles, taking at least a fortnight 
to circulate. Beside this, there are continual 
changes caused by people going home. Most 
officials take long furlough or long leave every 
two or three years, so that just as a com- 
mittee member becomes really interested and 
grasps things, she leaves the country and 
someone else has to take her place. The con- 
stant changes and transfers hold good in every 
sphere, as all government servants are trans- 
ferred every two or three years, so the diff- 
culty includes the membership as a whole. It 
seems almost impossible to get continuity of 
service. 


Home. 


It is often expressed, and one does wonder 
oneself, what girls did before there was a 
YEW GAS homes lypistsrins bahorerstart 
work on Rs. 30 ($10) per month and the 


5 


least charge that can be made them is Rs. 20 
($6.50) which of course is far less than they 
would pay elsewhere. The rates are on a 
sliding scale, girls paying according to their 
salaries, and it is because a couple of rooms 
are put aside for visitors such as missionaries 
and others, who pay more, that we are able to 
carry on the running expenses of the boarding 
department and make these concessions. The 
rent of the house was met by public donations 
and monthly subscriptions. While speaking 
of rent, another reason why a new building 
was needed is the fact that landlords raise 
rents at pleasure and it must be paid or else 
other quarters must be found. Private houses 
are not built for Association requirements and 
to find one with suitable accommodation was 
a very great difficulty and the harm done to 
the work by continual changes does not need 
emphasis. 


History of Progress towards New Building. 


In this presentation of some of the diffi- 
culties of the work, with a need for a more 
central building with enough rooms to more 
nearly supply the demand by girls who are 


6 


employed, a history of the progress toward 
this end will not be without interest. 

In 1901 there was an effort made to get a 
larger house so as to accommodate six girls 
instead of three. In 1902 further plans were 
iades 10r a. stilllelarfers house, | Dhis*swas 
secured in 1903 when the Association rented 
Sounny Viewruonsthes U pperviallwain. the 
financial statement for the same year the 
amount in the building fund is given as 
Rs. 746/15/8 ($280). In 1904 this had 
grown to Rs. 1,477/6/1 ($492) and in 1905 
the year closed with an important item about 
the probable gift of land from the Govern- 
ment for a building site. It was the desire of 
those interested to have a building suitable as 
an institute and home combined, in which 
thirty boarders could be accommodated. For 
this and a reading room, classroom and lec- 
ture hall for the institute work, Rs. 50,000 
($16,665) was needed. We had Rs. 1,600 
($534) in hand. (This land the Government 
did not give as there was some litigation 
regarding it.) 

During 1906 the first donation came from 
America. Mrs. Boies’ gift of Rs. 3,000 
($1,000) came through Mrs. W. J. Clark. In 


(i 


1907 the fund stood at Rs. 5,589/4/1 ($1,800) 
and in 1908 at Rs. 6,049/10/11 ($2,000). In 
1909 Miss Hill made strenuous efforts to get 
a suitable site or building, and in that year 
the Government promised through the edu- 
cation department a grant of Rs. 10,000 
($3,000) towards such an object. It was not 
till 1910 that the site on which the new build- 
ing now stands, consisting of two and one 
half. acres, was bought for Rs. 28,392 
($9,000). Besides this, Lady Dane has given 
a strip of land of 4 kanals, which gave 
a much-needed width to the property. Muss 
Hill had in the meantime gone home on fur- 
lough and during that year appealed for 
necessary funds in America. To her untiring 
zeal and effort, under God’s guidance, the 
gifts which have made the erection of the 
building possible were secured. The gifts 
from America will amount to Rs. 90,000 
($30,000), then the Government very kindly 
gave us Rs. 15,000 ($5,000) ; these two sums 
with the Rs. 6,049/10/10 ($2,000) collected 
during the previous years, plus another 
Rs. 2,625 ($1,500) raised in Lahore since 
1910, makes a total of Rs. 113,674 ($31,000). 
Of this, Rs. 28,392 ($9,000) was paid for the 


8 


land, leaving a balance of Rs. 85,000 ($28,- 
000) for the building. It took nearly two 
years to begin the work; first, it took months 
to get suitable plans; America was consulted, 
and finally a Chicago architect’s designs were 
adopted with modifications. 

The Association owes to Mr. Dorman and 
Mr. Izat a debt of gratitude which cannot be 
expressed in words. They have given help 
and supervision in spite of the many other 
calls on their time. In all the preliminaries 
the advisory council once again lifted the 
heavy end of the burden; Dr. Ewing, Mr. 
Agnew and Mr. Dorman, it is hoped, will see 
the result of their labors which may in some 
measure repay them for all they have done. 


New Building. 


The building has been called “Morse Hall” 
after Miss Rebecca Morse, the founder of 
the American Foreign Department, in whose 
memory a great deal of the money was given 
in America. It stands on a convenient site at 
the junction of Abbott and Macleod Roads 
and is a handsome and well-appointed build- 
ing. It contains accommodations for thirty- 
five residents, besides dining and drawing 


9 


NOILVINOSSV AUNOHW] NI AUVUAI'T 


rooms, library, three classrooms, office and a 
large gymnasium hall, the gift of Mrs. Mead 
of Plainfield, New Jersey, U. S. A., in which 
the opening ceremony took place. The hall is 
a beautiful room thirty-two feet by fifty feet 
and has a gallery at one end. It holds 300 
people and is a great acquisition. It had to be 
a long, narrow building because the land was 
so shaped. It is of red brick and has quite an 
imposing appearance. The long passages give 
good ventilation and it promises to be very 
cool in the hot weather. The grounds are not 
laid out yet, but lawns, a good garden and 
tennis courts will make a big difference in the 
setting. 

There are electric lights, and there will be 
electric fans in use later. This may sound 
strange to those who are accustomed to have 
fans, but it is of very late introduction in 
Lahore. Government House and one or two 
of the big hotels and clubs have had them, but 
it has only been put within the reach of other 
folk since last autumn. 

A friend to whom the Association owes 
much is Mrs. G. D. Turner. She has fur- 
nished both the library and drawing room. 


11 


The curtains in the library are of cretonne 
with a bold design in fruit and flowers running 
from a deep red to a rich purple. The chairs 
and couch are covered with it too, and the 
cushions are of a deep red. Book shelves 
three feet high run all round the room and 
there is besides a beautiful writing desk for 
the use of members. On the walls there are 
copies of Angelo’s prophets and sibyls from 
the Sistine Chapel, Rome. This room is much 
admired and an effort is being made to get a 
good supply of illustrated papers and maga- 
zines. (Lhe: books number °600 and) are a 
representative collection. 

The drawing room is cosey and comfortable 
and has some lovely pictures in it, including 
one given by the Honorable Emily Kinnaird 
which represents Christ saving a lamb which 
has fallen down a precipice, and “The 
Reapers,’ given by Miss Hunter. A frieze 
runs round the top and is to be colored 
eventually either a pale yellow or grey. The 
curtains are of a soft grey material with a 
darker foliage scattered over with bright 
colored birds and butterflies, having a rich 
velvety look, and the lovely big chesterfield 
and chairs are covered with the same. A 


12 


delightful “Cosey Corner” and big comfort- 
able cushions tell you something of the 
pleasure Lahore girls are now enjoying. 

The dining room is pink and grey. The 
curtains are a strawberry pink and the walls a 
pale grey. The chairs were made by the 
American Presbyterian Industrial Mission in 
Gujranwala, which also made the sideboard, 
which is Lady Dane’s gift. 

The bedrooms are all furnished alike with 
an iron bedstead, chest of drawers, dressing 
table, comfortable chair and table, a_ wall 
closet and carpet (dhurrie). This latter is 
red to match the curtain leading into. the 
passage and the blinds are stencilled in red and 
green. The bedspreads are red and white to 
match, making each room very pretty. The 
“Hill Memorial” room is the largest bedroom 
in the house and the fittings for this have been 
sent by the various members of the Hill 
family. 

The bath rooms are fitted with English 
baths and basins, which are a great advance 
on the old arrangements. At present no hot 
water has been put in because “‘it requires an 
expert” and such a person is not to be found 


13 


in Lahore. Later it is hoped something can 
be done about it. 

The boarding home has had every available 
space occupied. Fifty-three transient guests 
have been accommodated during the year, and 
at least thirty applicants have had to be 
refused for want of room. 


Classes. 


The educational classes in  typewriting, 
shorthand, commercial English and drawing 
have been held, the attendance during the 
earlier months being the highest on record. 
Altogether, since last April, eighty pupils have 
attended the classes for a longer or shorter 
period. The annual examination in jtype- 
writing was held in April, and fifteen out of 
the eighteen students who entered, passed; 
the first two gained the gold and silver medals 
presented by the Remington Company. Much 
advance has been made in shorthand, eighteen 
pupils successfully passed Pitman’s examina- 
tions, while one has gained a certificate for 
speed of eighty words a minute. The classes 
are under government control and the edu- 
cational department grants the certificates for 
the examinations. The fee for each subject 


14 


is only Rs. 1 ($.30) per month, which makes 
it perfectly easy for everyone to avail herself 
of this privilege. 

As the nearest Association educational 
center to Delhi, the new capital, the Lahore 
Association hopes to be the source of supply 
for the Government of India offices, many of 
which are beginning to employ women typists 
and clerks. 

The spiritual work of the Association, 
which is its core, is not the side in which most 
outward results can be seen, but God has 
deepened and enriched many lives during the, 
past year. Bible classes every week and a 
monthly prayer meeting were held at two 
centers. 

Lady Dane, the Association’s president, 
who, in all her busy life, has found time to 
give the work her sympathy, time and thought, 
will be no longer at Lahore. They lose not 
only a president, but a friend, and one whom 
Lahore will long remember. 

In the work that lies before them the com- 
mittee of Lahore ask for prayer, sympathy 
and cooperation, that in the future develop- 
ment of the Association, they may have 
wisdom, understanding and right judgment in 
all things. 

15 


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